In the use of multiple-head embroidery machines there has been no really efficient means for framing fabrics or material in the hoops at a speed adequate to supply the machine. Consequently the practice has generally been to complete the manual framing operation before starting the machine, or have one person manually perform the framing operation while another operates the embroidery machine.
In addition to being slow, manual framing operations are sometimes tedious in that proper alignment of the material within the hoop is difficult to achieve because only one hand is free to manipulate or control the material while the other inserts the male ring of the hoop. After the material is framed, it is then pulled and adjusted to properly align. If not properly framed the resulting pattern may be out of alignment and useless in a finished product.
It was to overcoming these problems, by the provision of a machine for framing fabric or materials in embroidery hoops, that the present inventor turned. The present invention, in its preferred embodiment, is an apparatus or machine having components for receiving the respective male and female rings of an embroidery hoop, holding the rings in a stationary position while fabric is aligned over the female ring, then inserting the male ring into the female ring, securing the material therebetween. Further, other approaches are envisioned where the female ring and fabric piece are positioned and mechanically held stationary with respect to each other while the male ring is manually emplaced.
Only one person is required to operate the machine of the present invention, and it has been found that the time to complete a conventional framing operation has been reduced by thirty to fifty percent. In tests performed during development of the machine, it was determined that one person can perform the framing operation for a conventional multi-head embroidery machine and simultaneously operate the embroidery machine. Such capacity substantially reduces the cost of an embroidering operation in terms of time and personnel.
More specifically, the machine of the present invention, which is compact and requires relatively little space in a manufacturing facility, is of a simple mechanical design having a minimum of interrelated working components, and requires no input of electrical energy. The sole energy input to operate the machine comes from the operator, with the motion required to run the machine being minimal and very efficient.
Toward this end the operative components are mounted on a substantially vertical supporting frame, of relatively narrow proportions. The vertical frame supports a vertically adjustable, horizontally extending table and template unit which receives the female ring of the embroidery hoop in a relatively stationary position. Mounted above the support table is a vertically reciprocating insertion means in the form of a head that is activated to insert the male ring into the female ring. The reciprocating head includes a circular retaining portion around which the male ring is frictionally held before insertion into the female ring. The head is mounted above the support table such that the male and female rings are aligned along a common axis through the approximate center of each ring. An activating means, preferably in the form of a reciprocating linkage, connects a foot pedal to the reciprocating head for the operation thereof.
After the female ring is positioned within the template, as will be described in detail below, the fabric or other material is positioned thereacross, and the foot pedal is depressed to activate the linkage to lower the head and insert the male ring therein. When the control pedal is released, the head is raised to a normal upward position to receive subsequent male rings therearound. The process is fast and required human energy input is minimal. It is thus seen that the primary objective of providing a machine for efficiently and accurately framing fabrics in embroidery hoops is realized. Other and further objectives will be recognized by those skilled in the art as the following detailed description is studied in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. In the drawings: